


Presumed Dead

by Trekkiehood



Category: Captain America (Movies), The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: Anxiety, Avengers Feels, Bruce Banner & Tony Stark Friendship, Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Clint Barton Has Issues, Gen, Hurt Steve Rogers, Hurt/Comfort, Minor Steve Rogers/Natasha Romanov, Missing Persons, Missing Scene, Oblivious Avengers, Presumed Dead, Protective Avengers, SHIELD, Science Bros, Serious Injuries, Tony Stark Has Issues, Tony Stark Has Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, Where Was Clint Barton During Captain America 2?
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-03
Updated: 2019-06-15
Packaged: 2020-01-04 05:44:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 5
Words: 3,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18337373
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trekkiehood/pseuds/Trekkiehood
Summary: Or how each Avenger found our about the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D.Natasha watched as S.H.I.E.L.D fell. The other Avengers were nowhere to be found and have no clue what has happened. Now they do."Presumed Dead" takes place during "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" and explores how each Avenger came to find out about the fall of S.H.I.E.L.D and the presumed death or Captain America





	1. Natasha

**Author's Note:**

> Sigh* why do I do this? Why do I start new stories when I haven't finished my old ones? 
> 
> I don't know. 
> 
> What I do know is that this one has already been mapped out and each Avenger will get there own chapter. 
> 
> Its something I've always wanted to see. Where was everyone else when S.H.I.E.L.D. fell?
> 
> Well, I hope you enjoy.please read and review!
> 
> God bless,  
> Jamie

"Hill, where's Steve? You got a location on Rogers?" She says, trying to speak over the loud blades of a helicopter.

Natasha waits for a response. "Hill?"

"What's wrong?" Sam yelled, looking up at her.

"Hill, where's Cap?" She says beginning to feel desperate.

There's a moment of static before the voice comes through,

"He was still on the Triskelion." It was short and clipped. The full gravity of what Hill said caused her eyes to widen slightly.

"Natasha?" Sam shouted. She barely heard him. She looked out the window at the Triskelion. Metal and fire falling from the sky.

"Where's the Winter Soldier?" she directed at Sam.

"He was up there!" He said nodding towards the ships falling out of the sky.

"нет, " she whispered.

"Natasha, what's going on what's wrong?" The Chopper set down in the middle of a large field. Natasha stayed staring out the window towards the destruction.

Fury took off his headset and turned around. "Natasha, what's the situation?"

"Steve, Cap, he was still up there." There was a moment of silence.

"But..." Sam turned his own head towards the sky full of smoke and ashes, but the large ship was gone.

As if everything had just set in, Natasha felt a small amount of panic rise. S.H.I.E.L.D had fallen. And Steve was... Missing.

She pulled out her phone, cursing the useless names and numbers. But there was one person she was sure she could still trust.

She dialled Clint. He didn't answer. She called again. And again. And again. No answer.

She'd finally done it. Lost everything. This was the exact reason she didn't get close to people.

"Natasha," Fury's hand on her shoulder surprised her and he ended up with a gun in his face. He easily deflected and she sighed.

"Everything's gone." She said feeling once again like the little girl who had everything stripped away from her. The little girl who was taught to be nothing but a fighting machine. She was still that little girl.

Fury's grip tightened comfortingly.

"The-there's still a chance." She manages to choke out.

Fury nods. "Go find him. The Captain has a lot of enemies. We can't let them have his body."

She threw him an angry glare. He shrugged in an almost calming manner. "Alive or dead, there are few people I trust to find him."

She straightened up, sending the scared little girl back into the dark recesses of her mind.

"Sam," she called out to the shell shocked looking soldier. He turned to her, an unreadable look I'm his eyes.

"Let's go." Was all she said. He followed obediently.

She would find him. She was determined.

After all, he would have done the same for her.

And she needed him to be okay. He trusted her and she trusted him.

That wasn't something she took lightly.


	2. Tony

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> His eyes widen as he sees the simple, four-word headline: CAPTAIN AMERICA PRESUMED DEAD.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I love this chapter so much.  
> Just FYI this chapter deals a lot with PTSD and anxiety and such.
> 
> The story talks a lot about Iron Man 3 too.
> 
> Please enjoy reading it as much as I loved writing it!
> 
> God bless,  
> Jamie

Okay, he lied.

Sure, he destroyed all of his suits but... Come on he was Iron Man! They were one and the same.

There was no separating the two.

It was easy enough to put an arc reactor directly into the suit. After all, he'd already done similar for the Iron Patriot.

But he was doing better.

He had started keeping normal hours. No more staying up for days on end inventing. Pepper made sure of that. Bruce too now that he was living in the Tower. Add Jarvis in the mix and it was a wonder that he was allowed into his lab at all.

But really, he was getting better. He had begun to eat more and he didn't drink near as much as he used to. He heeded Jarvis's warnings and went to Pepper instead of the bottle.

It was progress.

The PTSD was still there, but it was more manageable.

"Sir, " Jarvis interrupted some mindless tinkering.

"What's up J?" Tony said not looking up. He had eaten lunch a couple of hours ago and had gotten five hours of sleep last night. So Jarvis had no reason to scold him.

"Sir," the AI said again. This time Tony noticed the... Apprehension? In the bodyless voice.

Tony stopped, looking up at the ceiling. "What's wrong?"

"There are some... Articles circulating the internet of which I believe you may wish to take note."

The inventor scowled. "When did I make you so cryptic?" He grumbled, picking up his phone.

He turned it on. A news article appeared on the home screen.

His eyes widen as he sees the simple, four-word headline: CAPTAIN AMERICA PRESUMED DEAD.

He clicks on the link, not completely believing it. It didn't make sense.

He quickly skimmed the article.

**CAPTAIN**   **AMERICA PRESUMED DEAD**

**National icon and World War II veteran is presumed dead. The Captain, alias Steve Rogers, was briefly declared a fugitive by the espionage organization S.H.I.E.L.D. after the death of Director Nick Fury**.

**It was later discovered that S.H.I.E.L.D has been a cover for the Nazi organisation Hydra. Captain America and his team successfully took down S.H.I.E.L.D./Hydra but at great cost.**

**The icon was last seen fighting on the S.H.I.E.L.D aircraft, the Triskelion flying over the Patomic in Washington D.C. He was reportedly still onboard when the aircraft was destroyed.**

**No body has yet been found.**

**The country mourns the death of a true hero.**

Tony felt like the world was closing in on him.

He clicked on another link outlining the thousands of documents that had been released from S.H.I.E.L.D archives.

The world was going fuzzy. He couldn't breathe.

"Sir, I suggest you take a deep breath. Doctor Banner has been notified and is on his way. Please remain calm."

He couldn't. He tried. But he couldn't. He couldn't breathe.

He rubbed the area where his arc reactor used to be. He felt a new wave of panic was over him when he felt a slightly sunk in place in his chest, but no arc reactor. There was nothing to keep his heart beating. The shrapnel.

"Sir, remember, you had surgery. Your arc reactor was removed as well as the shrapnel. You will be perfectly fine. Please attempt to breathe until Doctor Banner arrives."

Breathe. But Cap was dead. He was killed. S.H.I.E.L.D was Hydra? How did he not- he should have known? He had hacked them years ago. Had all of their files saved onto a drive.

He should have known. But he didn't. And now his  _friend_  was dead.

Dead. Dead. Dead.

The phone fell from his hands and he clutched his head, hands pulling tightly at his hair.

Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.

Dead. Dead. Dead.

Breathe. Dead. Breathe. Dead.

His knees buckled beneath him. He found himself falling to the floor, but could do nothing to stop it.

Someone caught him. He felt arms come around him. Someone was calling his name.

He was sat down, leaning forward so his knees were in his lap. His hand hiding his face.

Someone was gently rubbing circles on his back. He heard calming whispers coming from beside him.

His brain stopped screaming and his breathing became a little more even.

But it didn't matter.

This wasn't some nightmare that he could wake up from.

Cap was dead.

_Steve_  was dead.

And there was nothing he could do about it.

It was too late.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next up, Bruce!
> 
> The chapter is already written, but I'm trying to prove to myself I can keep a schedule lol.
> 
> Hope you liked this one!
> 
> God bless,  
> Jamie


	3. Bruce

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce hears the news from a very distraught Tony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Part 3 - Bruce  
> I took creative licensing a bit with where he's been since the Avengers. It's a fanfiction. Sue me.
> 
> I can't tell you how much it burns just having this sit here for an entire week. I'm one of the people who likes to post as soon as write. 
> 
> Anyway, glad to have this out there.
> 
> Enjoy!

Bruce was reading in Tony's large library. The billionaire much preferred to read on his phone or tablet so Bruce wasn't really sure why he had such a big library. He was thankful none the less, as reading on a screen for too long gave him headaches.

He had been living in the Tower since New York. Most of the Avenger's split off to live their own lives, but Brice wasn't really sure what his "own life" was. When Tony had offered a room, well, floor of the Tower, Bruce had agreed.

He was often there alone, but since Tony's Malibu mansion had been destroyed (a very stressful week for everyone) Tony and Pepper had moved back into the Tower. Bruce was thankful for the company.

"Doctor Banner, Master Stark requires immediate assistant downstairs," Jarvis said, startling the scientist.

"Where?" He said rising.

Bruce didn't waste any time. Last time he had gotten a request like that, he had found Tony surrounded by broken bottles with numerous lacerations. Tony had been doing much better lately, but it was still concerning anytime Jarvis requested assistance.

"The workshop."

Bruce was already on the elevator.

The doors slid open and he made his way into Tony's private workshop.

The billionaire was standing beside his desk, his hands tightly clenched and pulling at his hair. His breaths were coming in quick, short gasps.

Bruce reaches him just as his knees gave way. He caught Tony, lightly calling his name.

Bruce slowly helped him to the couch in the corner, setting him down and sitting beside him.

The inventor's face was in his hands and he was more distressed than Bruce had seen in a while.

He rubbed Tony's back soothingly.

"It's okay, " he whispered. "It's over. You're here with me, Bruce, in your Tower. You'll be okay. You're done. You're safe. Just breathe. That right, breathe."

The billionaire's panicked breathing slowed, but he didn't raise his head.

Bruce kept murmuring and rubbing his back.

Finally, the man looked up. Bruce was slightly surprised to see the tear tracks on the man's face.

"Tony, it's okay. You're safe, I'm safe, Pepper's safe. It's okay."

Tony shook his head. "You don't know, do you?"

Bruce looked into the painfilled eyes of his friend. "Know what, Tony?"

"He-he," The inventor stopped, trying to collect his thoughts and words, "he's dead."

Bruce felt like someone punched him in the gut. "Who?"

"Steve, " it came out in a whisper. "Fury too." This was barely audible to the scientist who just stared.

"H-how?"

Tony started patting himself down. Bruce realised he was looking for his phone and went over and got it.

The billionaire hit a few buttons before handing the phone back to Bruce.

He read the article, working to calm the Monster raging in the back of his head.

When he finished he looked up at Bruce. Mouth slightly open.

"We-"

The phone in Bruce's hand started ringing. They both stared at the phone for several minutes before Tony grabbed it.

"Stark." Was all he said. Still not in control of his voice.

Bruce watched his eyes widen and mouth open.

"You're sure?"

A couple of moments of silence.

"We're on our way."

Tony ended the call and stood up, heading for the elevator.

"Tony?" Bruce asked, following.

The inventor didn't slow down. "That was Natasha. They found him. He's alive."

That was all he said.

But it was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Be sure to leave a comment!
> 
> Next week, Thor. He's a bit of a tough one, but I think I came up with a reasonable story... I hope...
> 
> God bless,  
> Jamie


	4. Thor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Heimdal informs Thor of what he has seen.

There was something undeniably dark impressed in Thor's heart. He felt ill at ease and distracted. When it started, he assumed he was simply distraught about his mother and brother. Their death had left a searing mark in Asgard, but this, this was different. This had to do with Midgard.

"Thor, " the hesitant voice or Heimdall startled him. 

The prince met his friend's eyes. "You know what it is that torments me." it was a statement, not a question.

"Your Midgardian friend has fallen to his enemy." Thor felt as though his heart had stopped.

"One of the warriors with whom I fought alongside?"

Heimdal gave a single nod, "The captain."

"Oh, " Thor couldn't help the small sigh. Some day's it felt as if all he ever did was lose those he cared for. "He was a valiant and worthy warrior. Has he made his final pathway to Valhalla?" Surely he had died a glorious death in battle. There was no other way for the Captian could go.

The Gatekeeper shook his head, "His soul still clings to his body. But, when it departs it should surely make its way to Valhalla." Thor hung his head.

"I have no use here in Asgard. I could better serve abroad, but I fear my father will not allow me to leave."

"You must speak to him," Heimdal said quietly.

"I shall. If the warriors of Midgard fall so easily, I fear what may be happening in other realms."

"Take caution Thor Odinson. Do not act foolishly in your grief."

"Thank you my friend." Thor needed to speak with his father. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Haven't updated in a while...sorry.  
> I took a break for Endgame and just never made it back lol.
> 
> This takes please between the end of Thor: The Dark World and the end credit scene. 
> 
> I know it's short, but the next chapter will be quite long so hopefully it will make up for it. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!
> 
> Next week Clint!
> 
> God bless,  
> Jamie


	5. Clint

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clint gets back from a mission to find that everything's changed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Apparently, I use the term "week" very loosely.

Clint let out a groan, not even bothering to remove his tactical gear before falling onto the bed. He was lucky it didn't collapse. He really needed to talk to S.H.I.E.L.D about getting better hotels for their agents. Sure, he wasn't here on vacation, but this was ridiculous!

He'd been undercover on a blackout mission for over forty-eight hours. Now that he was back, he was surprised S.H.I.E.L.D. hadn't tried to contact him yet. He just wanted to get out of Argentina and back to the good ol' United States.

Pushing past his exhaustion, he rose to his feet and began rummaging through his duffle bag. He changed into a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt. Then he settled onto the bed (he'd already done a bug check... of both kinds) to wait for his orders. He turned on his cell phone only to get bombarded with missed texts and phone calls. 

The over three hundred texts consisted of mainly:

**Call me.**

**If you're still alive call me.**

**You better be dead if you don't call me in the next hour.**

And over fifty more from Natasha.

There were several more from Tony:

**Red's pretty upset.**

**Like REALLY upset.**

**Call her.**

**Seriously Clint we're not being funny.**

**Call someone.**

**I'm serious.**

**You better not be dead Barton.**

**CALL ME**

And on and on the texts continued to come in. His phone was vibrating non-stop. Then the missed calls. Two-hundred seventy-three missed calls. Natasha had called him one-hundred fifty times. Natasha hated talking on the phone. 

Tony had joined in with seventy missed calls. Even Bruce tried thirty times. Then some unknown number had called him twenty. The last three were from... Maria Hill? What was going on?

Something was wrong. He felt panic begin to rise up. This was probably some sort of joke. They were just trying to get him riled up or something. Revenge. But, this was pretty extreme for their petty prank war. And Nat was on his side.

He dialed Natasha's number, hands shaking as he held it up to his ear. The phone continued to ring eight times before a very threatening, but familiar, voicemail played.

Now he was beyond worried. He tried again,  still only reaching Natasha's recitation. 

Okay. Okay. Okay. Nope. Something was wrong. Like very, very wrong. 

He tried a third time. The phone rang once, twice,  then someone answered.

"Clint?" 

He couldn't place the emotion he heard in his longtime friend's voice. "Natasha, what's going on?"

"Get to D.C. now." She was out of breath, something that rarely happened to such an experienced agent. 

"I just finished a mission. I'm stuck in Argentina, S.H.I.E.L.D hasn't gotten in contact yet."

"They're not going to. I'm sending to Tony to come to pick you up."

"What do you mean? Tasha, what's going on?" He was panicking again. So was Natasha. That was a legitimate reason for some to have a panic attack and he was pretty close right now.

He heard a quivering voice over the phone, "S.H.I.E.L.D. fell."

"What?" He hadn't even meant to whisper the word.

"It's gone, Clint. All of it."

"Where's Fury?" He wasn't sure why that was the first thing to come to his mind.

The Russian gave a long pause before  answering, "He's dead."

"What?" He shrieked it this time, "What happened? Natasha, you can't just kill Nick Fury!"

"I don't have time to explain everything. S.H.I.E.L.D. was hiding a Hydra cell. They made their move. S.H.I.E.L.D. is Hydra."

"Hydra?" he shouted, before remembering the ultra-thin walls that surrounded him. Lowering his voice he continued. "Like World War II, Red Skull, Nazis, Hydra?"

"Yes," she hissed and Clint wasn't sure if it was directed towards him or the topic of their very tense conversation.

Suddenly there was a loud shriek. A sound like... like a heart monitor makes.

"Natasha?"

The only answer was a whispered, "не снова,"

"Not again? Not again what? Natasha!"

The screeching stopped, being replaced by a single monotone noise. 

Natasha kept switching between Russian and English. Neither language seemed to give Clint much information. There were doctors yelling things he couldn't quite understand. He heard a loud, "Clear!" and he couldn't help but hold his breath.

What was going on? It was obviously somebody Natasha cared about. That list was extremely limited. It wasn't Fury. He was already dead. It had to be an Avenger. 

He knew he was fine, well, panicking but obviously alive. Bruce was practically invincible, with the Hulk. Not to mention the phone calls. Thor was in the same boat and he wasn't even on Earth. It had to be one of the humans. Nat and he were typically the most vulnerable, but both of them were accounted for. It wasn't Tony. Unless something happened between the dozens of messages and now. Plus, Nat said he was coming to pick him up. That left...

"Steve," His voice came out way too quiet. But, it had to be him. It made sense. Captain America fought Hydra. S.H.I.E.L.D. was Hydra. They had probably been looking for a way to get rid of him for a long time now. 

The single tone continued through three more attempts to start the man's heart. 

Finally, the noise stopped. It was replaced with the slow beeping noise of a monitor hooked up to a  _working_  heart.

He heard Natasha breathe a deep sigh of relief. 

"Natasha... please." He was so tired. He had been exhausted from his mission and now everything else... he wanted nothing more than to head back to the farm, hug Luara and take a year-long nap. With S.H.I.E.L.D. gone he might even get the chance, but not now. Not with his friend lying half dead in some hospital room. 

"Clint you need..." She sighed, the sound mirrored exactly how Clint felt. "That was the third time Clint. If he flatlines again... the doctor's are doing everything they can, but... it's bad Clint. It's really bad."

Great, now both of the worlds toughest assassins were on the verge of tears. Clint couldn't find his voice to answer.

As if strengthened by his silence, Natasha's voice regained its firm tone. "You need to get back here. Now. Tony is on his way and should be there soon. Head to the closest airport. He's using your phone to track you, so keep it on. Avoid all contact. Only talk if absolutely necessary. And under no circumstances tell anyone that you're from S.H.I.E.L.D.!"

"You got it." He tried to sound more confident than he felt. 

His phone tucked between his shoulder and his ear, he started throwing his few contents into his bag. He was about to hang up when Natasha spoke again.

"And Clint,"

"Hm?" he zipped the bag and threw it over his shoulder.

"Be careful."

A small smile pulled on his lips. "I will be. Just... just call me if anything changes." 

He could sense her nod.

"Hey Nat, everything's gonna be okay, right? It always is."

"Right," a small pause, "Call me when you get to the Quinjet."

It was his turn to nod. 

He ended the call, shoving the phone into his pocket. 

Everything was going to be okay. It always was.

He only wished he believed that.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> That's all folks!
> 
> Sorry it took so long to get out. I'm hoping this will break my writer's block.   
> This chapter has been sitting in a notebook since March... whoops. 
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this little story!
> 
> I know it doesn't have a "happy" ending, but it's definitely not the saddest thing I've written. Just rewatch the end of Winter Soldier.
> 
> I hope everything seemed canon. If you find a problem, please let me know!
> 
> Thanks so much for your support!
> 
> Please drop a review if you enjoyed <3
> 
> God bless,  
> Jamie

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you enjoyed! 
> 
> I'll update next Wednesday (or try to at least.)
> 
> Let me know what you thought! Just love reading comments!
> 
> God bless,  
> Jamie


End file.
